into the roles of PNG Air flight and cabin crew on the day to take their passengers on a make-believe flight to Mt Hagen and Tari. Jasper Kalimba and Patricia Lucas were at the helm of the aircraft’s controls, while Martina and Shalaintha in the cabin made sure the passengers were fed and well taken care of during the flight. Our own flight and cabin crew better watch out – these four took their jobs seriously! We wish all the students the very best for the remainder of the school year. PNG Air supports second Enga Fashion Fair The 2024 Enga Fashion Fair was held on Saturday, August 10 at the new Take Anda Amphitheatre in Wabag town as part of the 30th anniversary Enga cultural program. The runway show featured bilumwear handwoven by the rural women of Enga, and an award- winning collection of high fashion by Engan creatives Lisa Arut and Stanley Peasaro. The show was initiated by the Enga Tourism
Bureau with the Enda Anda (Women’s House) Association to promote the development of traditional artisan skills and create marketable products to generate income for rural families. Sponsored by development partners UNDP and EU, a series of workshops was conducted in Wabag in May by world- renowned bilum fibre artist and designer Florence Jaukae Kamel who taught 30 participants from various Engan districts new ways to apply bilum weaving skills to make wearable products. It was the creations that came out of these workshops that were showcased on the runway at the Enga Fashion Fair, with seven Enga-made bilum dresses completed. The event opened with a homage to the meri blouse, before moving included garments by Florence under her Bilum Meri label that allowed the local audience to see the world’s best. The final collection was a to the bilumwear showcase which
stunning display by Lisa Arut, who first came to attention in 2019 when she was named Emerging Designer of the Year at the Port Moresby-based PNG Fashion Week using textiles by fellow Engan designer Stanley Peasaro. However none of the duo’s pieces had ever been shown in their home province of Enga before. The staging of this event was also an opportunity to encourage youth participation and volunteerism in the activities surrounding the Enga Cultural Show. With support and encouragement of the principal and staff, 50 students from the Innovative University of Enga (IUE) volunteered to be part of the runway as models, production and staging crew. PNG Air stepped in to sponsor return airfares for
steps with this eager group of first timers. This engagement with one of the nation’s leading theatre directors injected a level of experience and expertise that elevated the provincial event to a capital city standard. It was a rare and exciting experience for Wabag-based tertiary students to take part in something different their participation they achieved an enormous growth in confidence, and their enthusiasm and enjoyment had the crowd cheering, applauding and whistling at every pose. With the success of the fashion fair, organisers plan to make it an annual event for Enga during its cultural show weekend. from their routine activities. Through
runway director Andrew Kuliniasi to fly from POM to Wabag to develop the choreography and rehearse the
Models and crew pose with director Andrew Kuliniasi (front) at the Enga Fashion Fair
Photo credit: Jerry Albaniel, JA Video Production
VOLUME 40 2024
44
Made with FlippingBook Learn more on our blog